Quantifying particle and wave effects in phonon transport of pillared graphene nanoribbons

SX Liu and ZC Zong and F Yin and VI Khvesyuk and N Yang, INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF THERMAL SCIENCES, 217, 110067 (2025).

DOI: 10.1016/j.ijthermalsci.2025.110067

This study investigates the dual nature of phonons - encompassing both particle-like and wave-like behaviors - and their roles in thermal transport within pillared graphene nanoribbons (PGNRs). Monte Carlo simulations are employed to evaluate how the presence of pillars affects the thermal conductivity of graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), revealing that pillars significantly reduce thermal conductivity by enhancing phonon- boundary scattering, thereby emphasizing particle effects. A comparison with molecular dynamics simulations enables quantitative assessment of the respective contributions of particle and wave phenomena to the observed reduction in thermal conductivity. Notably, as the width of PGNRs decreases, the influence of wave effects initially increases and then diminishes, suggesting a saturation behavior. Furthermore, this study introduces and evaluates the concept of phonon resonance hybridization depth in PGNRs.

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